Ghosts of Her Past
by whispers.of.my.dreams
Summary: Ten years after deciding to leave SGH and her whole life behind, Meredith is regretting her decision. As she is rethinking her decision, all the ghosts of her past come back and change her life in unexpected ways. DerMer a little later.
1. The Right Decision

Author's Note: I do not own any part of Grey's Anatomy, and I am starting a new story, despite the fact that I have numerous stories unfinished. This is set in the future, and is a bit different than other future stories.

"_Could this day get any worse already?" _Meredith thought to herself, driving in her car, the rain pounding the roof of the car. She was late for an appointment, and she had two sick children in the back of the car, who she had to drop off at her husband, Hayden's mother's house. "_It's another glorious Seattle day," _Meredith thought sarcastically

"Mommy, I'm hot!" A whiney voice in the backseat broke Meredith's thoughts. Meredith looked through the rear view mirrors, and looked at her two children, Caleb who was the oldest and five years old, and Kaela, the youngest who was three.

"Kaela, we're almost at Grandma's, and then you can snuggle up on the couch and watch TV okay?" Her attention was now brought to the squirming Caleb. "Caleb, are you buckled in properly?"

Caleb, with his fair hair and blue eyes like his Mother nodded obediently, and then sat still. Kaela took after her father, with green eyes and curly chestnut brown hair.

Meredith continued driving, until she pulled into a large Tudor-Style house, and then took Kaela out of her car seat, and resting her on her hip, picked up the toy bag she had packed, and held Caleb's hand and walked up to the giant house.

She knocked on the door, and an older lady, with black hair speckled with grey answered.

"Oh, hello Meredith!" The lady welcomed Meredith into her house, and then bent down so se was eye-level with Caleb. "How's my Caleb doing?" She ruffled his hair, and Caleb just smiled adoringly.

"Thanks so much for this Adriane, I couldn't miss work today, and you know your son better than I do, he's a work-a-holic." Meredith and Adriane chuckled, and Meredith handed over the sick Kaela to her grandmother.

"You know where you can call me, and if their fever gets any worse, make sure you call me okay? My afternoon isn't that full, so I will be home early okay? Bye guys!" Meredith gave Caleb a hug, and kissed Kaela on her head. "See you later!"

Meredith got back into her car, and thought again of her life. Lately, after seeing a ghost of her past in a magazine, she thought of her decision of leaving the surgical program at Seattle Grace Hospital, and opening her own practice after the blow-up with Derek and Addison Shepard, ten years ago.

FLASHBACK

"_Meredith, I love you!" Derek said passionately, running his hands through his hair. "I just can't get over you! I've tried our marriage Addison," he said, switching his focus to his estranged wife. "You know just as well as I do that this just isn't working."_

_Addison's eyes were filling with tears. "But Derek, why did you choose me over her? What happened to trying? We were happy!" _

_Derek shook his head. "You are so ignorant then Addison. I'm distant, we don't talk, I don't get mad, and we hardly spend any time together. This was coming. How can you just stand there and look so shocked? The warning signs were there!"_

_Meredith just stood there confused and shocked. Was this just a dream? Or was this really happening? Could Derek possibly be dumping his wife for her? Meredith's eyes started to tear up, because she had so many thoughts in her head, and she just couldn't make sense of it. _

_Derek was looking at Meredith, his eyes begging her to say "Yes, yes Derek! I love you too!" But Meredith had had enough of Derek's games. He had said he loved her, but then he chose Addison. She still loved him yes, but she had to get over him. It was just too much drama for her. He had led her on, and he had led his own wife on. He had both women thinking that he loved them, and he would never leave them. But, as the scene unfolded, Meredith realized that Derek had left them both. It was always going to be a tug-of-war with him. He shouldn't get either of them. Derek didn't deserve Addison or Meredith. He deserves to be alone. And I won't be able to get over him, unless I move away from this, and forget about him, let him become a memory, a memory of a fling that could have been something more, if he hadn't been such an idiot. _

_Meredith shook her head, her heart breaking, and turned and ran. Ran away from Derek, ran away from her job at Seattle Grace, and ran away from the sound of her breaking heart. _

END OF FLASHBACK

_It was the right decision, _Meredith told herself, her eyes brimming with tears. _My heart needed to be broken. It hurt, but it was the only way I could ever get over him. In the end it was okay though. I have my own practice, a great husband, Hayden, and two wonderful children. I have a nice house, a horse Sam, and two dogs, Doc II and Teddy. This is all so great. Sure, I miss my old friends, Izzy, George, Christina, heck, even Alex. But it was what had to be done. Right? But, if it was such a great decision, then why do I miss my old life so much? _


	2. The One Person

Meredith parked her car in her designated parking spot, and walked up to the door of the small yellow house she had converted into her practice. Her secretary greeted her, and gave her messages.

"Your four o'clock cancelled, but rescheduled for next Friday at eleven, and Hayden called, saying he will be here to pick you up to go out for lunch, and that he'd be home early tonight." Ingrid, the plum woman in her twenties with kind hazel eyes and a mass of haywire red curls said.

"Thanks Ingrid. Send my nine o'clock to exam three okay? I'll be in to see them in a few minutes. Meredith walked down the hallway and up the stairs at the back of the house to her private office. This gave her a few minutes to think and collect herself and push old memories out of her mind.

The only thing Meredith forgot was that her April issue of Seattle Medical Journal was lying on her desk, and on the cover was a tall man in his forties, with wavy brown hair and the dimples in his cheeks she could never forget. There, the subject of the article: NUMBER ONE MAN IN BRAIN SURGERY was the biggest ghost of her past, Derek Shepard.

"Come on babe, you gotta get up." A woman said softly, nudging the sleeping figure beside her. A loud grunt came from the sleeping man, and then a muffled:

"But I don't wanna. It's _cold outside!"_

"God, you sound like a whining six-year old Derek." The woman, who had short black hair and startling green eyes, simply shook her head and walked to the bathroom.

Derek slowly sat up in bed. He was still living in Seattle, and still working at Seattle Grace Hospital, and they were mad rumours spreading around the hospital that he was up for Chief of the hospital when Dr. Webber retired this fall. Derek loved SGH; he loved Seattle so much, that he had chosen to stay here, even after Addison had moved back to New York, and divorced him. In the end, he had chosen the idea of a relationship with Meredith over a solid, albeit boring and predictable relationship with Addison. But now he had a great relationship with Cara Gingham. The relationship had the perfect balance of steamy, hot sex and balanced with a strong, solid friendship.

"Derek, do you have any early surgeries?" Cara asked innocently, her head around the door of the bathroom, her eyes wide and playful.

"No, I actually don't sweetheart, but why are you asking me this?"

"I don't really know…..want to have a shower with me?" Cara, asked, a smile tugging at then ends of her mouth as she tried to stay in character. Derek got out of bed, kissed his girlfriend and followed her obediently into the washroom.

Izzy Stevens sat numbly on the subway, with all the business men and women commuting to work, tapping the floor of the subway restlessly. Her moving leg was hitting the man next to her, and he looked at her from over his newspaper. She tried to grin sheepishly, but it came out as a pathetic half-smile, and turned so her leg was not touching his, and continued to tap-tap-tap away. She was wearing head to toe black, unusual for her, anyone who really knew her would know. Her long blonde hair was lying flat against her head. She hadn't taken much time getting ready today; she had on only a tiny bit of lip gloss, and the remainders of her black kohl eyeliner from the night before. Her blue eyes were rimmed with red, and her cheeks were pink. All-in-all, she looked like crap.

Her cell phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket. She answered it, with a sigh.

"Hello, Mrs. Karev." Izzy said slowly, as if she was exhausted.

"I know. I'm hanging in there. How are you doing?"

Izzy waited for the passionate reply.

"I know it's tough. I'll come by after work, and we can talk. I'll take care of everything Mrs. Karev; you just stay and deal with this the best that you can okay? See you at seven."

Izzy sat farther back into her chair and looked up at the roof of the subway. The fluorescent lights were blinding her, but she couldn't look away. She needed to feel some pain.

_How could this happen? _Izzy thought to herself.

_He was a brilliant doctor, he was doing good things. He was going to go to Africa and fix a cleft palate on a little girl Kia._

Izzy blinked, pushing her tears back into her head, for she could not cry on the subway. _And now, now he can't help Kia! Instead he will rot away in the ground of the local cemetery. How could that drunk driver not see him? How? Why did he bother to drive after drinking so much? _

It was too much, Izzy could not fight her tears anymore, and she let them fall down her face slowly, because the one man she had actually let down her guard to, the one man who could make her smile and laugh when she was crying, the one man who completed her was **dead.**

George was woken up by the loud ringing of his phone. He switched on the lamp on his night table, much to the dismay to the woman beside him, and answered the phone.

"What? Oh my God. Of course I'll come." George nodded and then hung up the phone.

The woman beside him, his wife Ginny rolled over and looked in her husband's eyes, her face filled with concern as she saw the worried and sad face on her husband's face.

"What is it?" She asked, reaching her hand out and touching George's arm lightly.

George ran his hands over his face, and then said slowly, "one of my friends when I was a resident, well her husband just died."

Ginny gasped, and then moved closer to George. "He was hit by a drunk driver while crossing the road after a twenty hour shift at the hospital. He died pretty much on contact, and the funeral's tomorrow. They both stayed in Seattle. I said I'd go."

Ginny nodded. "I understand. Do you want me to come?"

"Someone has to stay with Alexis and J.J."

"My mom will watch them for three days. You don't want to go alone."

George nodded. "Okay. We'll leave tomorrow afternoon." He clicked the light off and got back into bed, and fell asleep.

Okay that's chapter two….hope you like it


	3. Vast Distances

CHAPTER THREE : Vast Distances

Christina was staring at herself in the mirror, while Burke was putting his tie on in their huge walk-in closet.

"Is it possible that I have gotten _fatter?_" Christina demanded, looking at her reflection with her hands on her hips. Burke chuckled from the closet. Christina looked around the mirror and glared at Burke.

"It is so **not **funny Preston! I am the one who is carrying your son am I not?" She deepened her glare.

"Hey, Christina, I am only laughing because you're not fat, actually, I'd love it if you _did _eat a little more. We don't want our son to be malnourished when he's born!" Preston smiled, his eyes sparkling. Christina just frowned and punched Preston. **Hard. **

"Ow!" Preston objected, rubbing his arm. Christina smiled, and then Preston stopped rubbing his arm and stood behind Christina, with his arms around her waist and resting on her huge belly.

Christina smiled, looking at their reflection, a perfect family. But her feeling of happiness diminished when she saw the clock on the wall.

"It's nearly five! We have to go!" She turned around and pushed Burke out the door. Burke just laughed and picked up his keys, walking out the door and into the slight rain.

Meredith walked slowly into the misty cemetery, her long black skirt blowing around her legs and billowing in front of her from the strong chilly winds that made her shrug deeper into her black coat with big buttons on the front, her long blonde hair pulled into a loose bun. Across the grass, Izzy was being comforted by her mother, and Mrs. Karev was holding her hand, stroking it and wiping her eyes daintily.

At that moment, Izzy looked up, and Meredith and her eyes connected, and they both stopped. Meredith's breath got caught in her throat. A second ago, the hundred feet separating her from Izzy had seemed like nothing. Now, it was the huge distance that separated her from her old friend, the thing that kept them apart. It was the distance that Meredith had put between them, when she had severed the ties from her old life. The distance seemed daunting, but Meredith took one step forward, and decided that she had to continue on, one step at a time, towards the life she left behind.

Izzy had been focusing on the ground, surrounded by Alex's mom and her own. She had been focusing on the ground because she knew that if she looked at the casket that held him, she would lose it. She had cried steadily for four days, stopping, for an hour before she realized that it wasn't a dream, and he really was gone. But all of a sudden, she felt the urge to look up. She did, and at that moment, she saw the same waif-thin figure, long tousled blonde hair in a bun, and the same blue eyes that had ten years ago, told her with tears in them that she had to leave, and she would sell them the house in a little while, and not to contact her, she had to make a new beginning, somewhere else.

FLASHBACK

_Izzy flinched from her spot on the couch as she heard the front door slam. She turned around, looking over the top of the couch, staring at a soaking wet Meredith, her mascara running down her face, taking tiny little gasping breaths._

"_Meredith?" Izzy said, turning all the way around to look directly at Meredith, her voice filled with concern. "What's wrong?"_

"_I ran-" –gasp- "Away from him. I have to go."_

"_Meredith? What are you talking about?" Izzy had now stood up, and had tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Can you tell me please?"_

"_He said he was leaving me for her, and I ran away. I told him no. **No." **Meredith said, gasping and shaking. "Just like that. I can't go back now. I have to leave and start over." _

_Izzy followed Meredith up the stairs, and into her room where she pulled a suitcase out from under her bed and furiously started packing._

_She must be absolutely crazy, Izzy thought. She's rambling on like a lunatic and I don't understand what she's talking about. She's doing a classic Meredith freak-out; she attracts trouble and problems and then has public break-downs and freak-outs._

_She actually said though, "What are you doing?" _

_Meredith whipped her head around, glaring at Izzy._

"_Are you stupid? Or do you choose when to listen to me or not? Or are you just being your usual self, a 'dumb blonde'? I'm **packing **because I am **leaving!" **Meredith snapped, returning to her suitcase._

_Izzy was dumbfounded. Had Meredith just said she was leaving? Had she just called her a "dumb blonde"? What about the program? _

_Clearly, Izzy did NOT understand._

"_What about the program?" Izzy said tentatively. _

"_I called the chief. I quit." Meredith said flatly, panting. She was finished packing. _

"_What?" Izzy could not understand why Meredith was doing this._

"_You can't let McDreamy ruin your career!" _

"_Dr. Sheppard." Meredith said quietly. "And the chief is referring me to another program, in Oregon." _

_Izzy looked at the floor. She was losing a best friend, a house and a roommate all in one day. In the past ten minutes she had lost them all._

"_Meredith, why are you doing this?" Izzy asked. Meredith was now at the door, her hand on the handle, poised to step outside and leave Izzy and the life she had known behind._

"_I have to. I'll sell you the house in a while okay? Goodbye Izzy."_

_Meredith turned and walked into the rain, not looking back, letting the rain soak her all the way to the bone. It felt like she was being cleansed of all the feelings and problems of the past months. In the end, she felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. But in her heart, she had a new weight of sadness, she already missed Izzy and George, Christina, Burke, Joe, and ever Bailey. She missed them all. _

_Izzy stared at the back of Meredith until she was no longer in sight, and then she just stared at the door where, only shortly before, Meredith had been standing. Finally, a few hours later, after realizing that Meredith wasn't coming back, she stood up and went to bed, her whole body heavy with exhaustion, sadness and loneliness, and regret for not stopping Meredith._

END OF FLASHBACK

As she got closer to Izzy, Izzy broke free of the mothers, and walked closer to Meredith, closing up even more of the distance, until only a few feet separated them. All at once, Izzy and Meredith enveloped each other in a hug, tears streaming down their faces. They stood there for a few minutes, crying and holding each other, happy to be together again.

"I missed you so much Meredith!" Izzy said

"I did too, and I am so, so sorry about Alex." Meredith said, breaking free of Izzy's grip.

Izzy nodded. "I know. You were his friend, even when I hated him." She grinned and chuckled. "It's so great to see you Meredith."

"We have to catch up," Meredith said slowly. Izzy nodded.

And with that, Izzy and Meredith walked side by side, arms linked back to the ceremony, starting to build the bridge across the vast distance between them.

So that's chapter three. Sorry it took me so long, I was having writer's block! More to come as soon as possible!


	4. Sand

CHAPTER FOUR: Sand

Izzy and Meredith sat next to each other during the service, Meredith holding Izzy's hand, and walking with her when she placed a rose on the casket being lowered onto the ground.

"My life won't be complete without you," Izzy said softly. "I love you."

Meredith quickly looked up to the sky, forcing her tears to stay. She exhaled deeply, and then walked with her friend back to their seats.

Was it really that long ago that she had felt that way about Derek? The kind of love that haunts you, follows, and stays with you for the rest of your life. Yet she had managed to give that all up? And for what? She had Hayden and the kids, and Hayden was strong and sturdy, and she loved him, but she would never love Hayden like she had loved Derek. So this is why she was crying, because in her heart, she knew that she would never experience that kind of love so deep, ever again.

Derek was standing in the back row of attendees at Alex's funeral, Cara on his arm. From what he remembered of Izzy, he had expected a much more flamboyant ceremony. He shook his head, and fought the small beginnings of a smile tugging at the sides of his mouth.

That's just plain stupid, Derek thought to himself. A Flamboyant Funeral? Absolutely ridiculous. He was hanging his head, hiding the small hints of a smile when Cara tapped his arm lightly. He looked at her, and she motioned to the two women who were placing a single red rose on the casket, one of them blonde, a little curvier than the waif-thin figure of the strawberry blonde beside her. In his heart he knew it was her. But his mind couldn't believe it. As the strawberry blonde looked to the sky before turning around and heading back to her seat, he knew for sure it was her.

_Meredith Grey, the one girl he could not get over._

Meredith furrowed her brow, and thought. It couldn't be _him _could it? She had paused for only a second to see a flash of the same curly dark hair, and piercing eyes. But then, as soon as she saw the person, he was gone. So it couldn't be. Would Izzy really do that to her? She wanted to ask her, but the steady trail of tears down both of Izzy's cheeks and her red nose stopped her. This was not the time, nor the place. But still, even as she told herself, that it was **not him, **she couldn't help but get a little excited, and for that she was upset with herself. She had a husband for Christ's sake, she had _kids._ And even if he didn't have either a wife or children, it didn't change the fact that she _was _married with children. So, Meredith sat there through the rest of the funeral, nervously twisting her wedding band around her rig finger.

"Mere, I am just going to go and wait in the car okay? I can't bear to see them…" Izzy trailed off, gesturing the workers who were shovelling the moist, fresh dirt onto the casket. Meredith nodded. She was grateful for this, she needed more fresh air to cleanse her thoughts before she went to her old house, where she was afraid that flashbacks of her time with Derek would flog her, and she would be forced to relive them all over again.

She was just standing there, inhaling and exhaling, staring at the newly covered grave, where only a small height difference showed that a old friend, an ass but also someone's true love, her 'soul mate' was lying beneath the ground. Meredith stood there, lost in thought and pity for her friend, when a tall figure came up and stood beside her.

Her heart leapt and settled in her throat. Could it be him? She looked out of the corner of her eye, and sure enough it was.

"The biggest man in brain surgery, eh?" Meredith said flatly.

"What can I say? The writers totally fluffed that part up." Derek turned so his face was looking a Meredith, but all he got in return was her profile. "Mere, how are you?" He asked softly.

"I'm doing well." She answered curtly. "You?"

"I'm great, just great" Derek said, shoving his hands in his pockets. He eyed her left hand. "You're married?" It was supposed to be a regular question, but it came out accusing, his voice shaky.

Meredith covered her left hand and blushed self-consciously. "Yeah, I am." She smiled a little smile. "And I have two kids.

Derek tried to stop his mouth from gaping wide open. But it was hard. Meredith Grey, the woman who strongly said that she liked kids, but they were **not **for her.

Meredith glared at him. "Is that so hard to believe?" she snapped.

Derek nodded furiously. "No…..but then again, it seems a little out there. I mean, you were Meredith-I-Don't-Like-Kids-So-Don't-Ask-Grey. At least when I knew you." Derek said quickly, eyeing the angered look Meredith was giving him, and her face softened. A little bit.

He looked at her, right into her eyes. "That was a long time ago though." He said quietly.

Meredith had been looking at him, but when he said that, her whole body tensed up and she looked away.

"_Meredith, don't go!" _

"_Listen to me!"_

"_I love you. I choose YOU!" _

Meredith shook her head, shaking her thoughts out of her head, forcing herself to think about the present, and not to dwell on the past, and not to relive the past and keep her head in the present!

"Mere? Are you okay?" Derek asked quizzically.

"Yeah. Just a small headache." Meredith said quietly. She was telling herself to ignore it. She had felt a twinge of longing when he had called her Mere, so softly, concern dripping from his every word.

"Please," Meredith started quietly. She cleared her throat. "Please don't call me Mere anymore." She said, louder now, before she turned on her heel and started to walk away.

Derek just gaped at Meredith's back, before realizing that she was walking away from him. Again.

"Meredith! Wait!" He grabbed her arm and turned her around to face her.

Her eyes were in slits, and her cheeks were pink and flushed from the chilly air.

"What Derek?" She said impatiently.

'That's it?" He said, letting go of Meredith's arm and holding his arms out, palms up to the sky, as if he was not just asking Meredith, but God and powers out of his control.

"We can't exactly "be friends" Derek," Meredith said passionately, putting her hands through her hair, wrecking her pulled-back-bun.

Derek frowned, not understanding why Meredith was saying this.

"We can't be_ friends_; we have to much history between us Derek. It just can't happen!"

"It could work! Our history would bring us closer, and it would be great!"

Meredith shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. "That's just it Derek! We can't be **close, we** can't be **friends,** and we can hardly **talk to each other. **It's just going to end up bad, and I know it. You do. I can't handle being close to you, having you in my _life! _I….I just **can't.**"

This time when Meredith spun around and stalked off, Derek stayed where he was, his mouth gaping open, staring at the back of the one woman he had ever deeply, truly, **loved. ** And once again, he had let her walk away, and he couldn't quite hold onto her, like the fine grains of sand, slowly slipping out of his fingers, and out of his reach as he hopelessly kept trying to hold onto the sand and the memories of sunny days and happier times.

A/N Okay, that's chapter four, sorry it took me so long, I'm not used to having so many people reading my stories and reviewing them, this is an all time high! (My previous high was three, so thank you!)


	5. Everything, and Nothing All at Once

Chapter Five: Nothing, and Everything All At Once.

"Cristina Yang? Is that you?" Miranda Bailey said incredulously, as she saw her former surgical-intern for the first time at the small gathering at Izzy's house after the funeral.

"Dr. Bailey! How have you been all these years?" Cristina said, absently rubbing her very pregnant stomach. "Who'd have thought that I, the most competitive intern, destined for an amazing career, would wind up pregnant, when my career has basically just started?"

"Not me," Bailey said, and chuckled.

"Me either, Dr. Bailey!" Cristina said.

"Honestly, Cristina, its Miranda now." Bailey said. "You're not my intern anymore, and I'm not a resident anymore."

"Only if you remember its Cristina _Burke_ now," Cristina said as both women laughed, and sat down on a comfortable, worn, brown leather couch to continue talking.

George O'Malley meanwhile was trying to locate Izzy Stevens-Karev. While she had once been a major part of his life, his best friend and confidante, he hadn't spoken to her in over a year, with the exception of a Christmas card, as well as birthday cards for him, and his two kids. It had been entirely too long, although he still felt that magnetic pull toward Izzy, and he still felt that amazing bond he had with her, even ten years later. Yet where was she? He scanned the crowd, all varying heights and shapes, cloaked in a variety of dark, sombre shades, their faces solemn at the funeral; were now brighter, smiling and hobnobbing with the other guests. The crowd varied from doctors, and their families, to surgeons (there is a **big** difference, mind you), to distant relatives, friends and neighbours, all to celebrate a man that George had never particularly cared for. When they were at Seattle Grace, he was an ass, a jerk, a womanizing man-whore- not as bad as Sloane, but still not a very upstanding man. Yet, as he grew older, and his affections for Izzy grew, his inner soft-side became evident, and still George couldn't get over his loathing for him.

First off, George, in his position as BEST FRIEND, had full right to say that Alex wasn't good enough for Izzy, and while he used to be right, but looking around the living room of the house they shared, at all the pictures of the happy couple on the walls and tables, he had the striking suspicion that he was now in the wrong.

As he walked into the front hall, continuing his search for Izzy; where the people who just came to the 'after-party' to save face were leaving, a full half-hour after the start.

The walls of the narrow hallway were adored with more pictures of Izzy and Alex-

Izzy and Alex getting married, Izzy and Alex on the beach, Izzy and Alex in a third-nations country, giving surgeries, and Izzy and Alex smiling outside their new house, the 'Sold Sign' still stuck in the ground. They were smiling hugely in all of the pictures, and in more than one Alex was gazing adoringly at Izzy, who was most often oblivious, looking at the photographer.

In one especially adorable picture, Alex had his strong muscular arms around Izzy's waist, his head bowed, his mouth open as if he was caught mid-sentence, Izzy standing in front of him, her delicate hands on his, her head facing down, her mouth open wide, laughing at something he had whispered in her ear.

What was it about being in this house, seeing these pictures, seeing Izzy that was making George's head spin? What was making him furious, just looking at the pictures of the perfect couple in action? Could it be that maybe, after all these years he was still in love with Izzy?

He had always romanticized having a relationship with her- they were so close, that it was hard not to just imagine the next step- but he knew that they were friends. Had they met in a different way, then maybe, they could have had a romantic relationship, but fate had another game plan. So he took their relationship as it was, not questioning it, letting her get hurt by Alex, and then fall for him again.

He had moved on; he had a wife, two kids- he loved them all to bits. So what was with him? His head was spinning, and he felt a little ill. He was startled by a light tapping on the shoulder, and he spun around, looking at the perpetrator- medium length blonde hair, blue eyes, straight nose, teeth with imperfections, and full pink lips. Could it really be? It was, Izzy Stevens-Karev.

"George, oh, George," she whispered, and moved closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder, letting the tears she was holding back come. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her, sheltering, protecting, comforting. He regulated his breathing to match hers, even though they were slightly shaky and unsure. He patted her hair, her beautiful hair, and sighed. "Oh, Izzy," he whispered, and squeezed her harder, and then he realized that even though they hadn't seen each other much in ten years, nothing had changed, and yet everything had. They still worked, they still clicked, they still fit, perfectly together.

A/N

First new chapter in a LONG TIME. I know. I'm going to write more, soon. Please review. Thanks.


	6. Never Forget

Chapter Six: Never Forget

"Cristina!" Meredith exclaimed, hugging her old friend happily. "Look at you!" Cristina shrugged happily and hugged her friend back.

"What can I say? Burke really got to me!" Meredith and Cristina chuckled. "You still look the same, gorgeous, and freakishly skinny as always. I could kill you."

"But then who would you gloat about your glorious career to? No one else would put up with you, in case you haven't noticed," Meredith said. "Can you believe that Alex is dead? Just like that. I mean, we're so young. Not as young as we all used to be, but life is so short"-

"Oh, God. Stop your whining. You've got two kids, an amazing husband, your own practice, you're anorexic-thin- you're not dying, and your husband isn't dead. Give it up!" Cristina snapped, massaging her bulging stomach.

"Whoa, Whoa. You okay Cristina?" Burke said softly, coming up behind her, placing his dark leathery hands on her creamy, white soft hands, and easing her into a nearby chair. "You'll have to excuse Cristina here," he said soothingly, while he was shifting her, making sure she was comfortable. "She's been more than a little hormonal lately, mood swings, sudden outbursts, you know. Last trimester, only a month left to go." He chuckled, as Cristina objected, and started to snap at him.

"All in all not too different from the regular Cristina," Meredith laughed, and Burke nodded.

"Just 24/7,"

"Will you two shut up? I'm about to burst a bladder here!" Cristina said, struggling to get up. "Mere, come with me? Then we should try and find Izzy," Meredith helped Cristina out of the easy chair, which was no easy feat- Cristina was HUGE, and that chair was one of those comfy chairs that your butt sinks in to, and the two women headed off to the bathroom.

"George, I missed you. God, what am I going to do?" Izzy said, sitting on the bedroom floor, near the bed she and Alex shared- well, the bed that they _used _to share. "I mean, when you marry someone, you think it's going to be **forever**, I got six years! Oh, God, next weekend would have been our seventh year wedding anniversary. We had planned a vacation to Africa, going on a safari before repairing a cleft palate on a little girl. Oh, no. What will happen to her? I have a picture and everything. It was all confirmed! She will be brutally disfigured for the rest of her life!! Why did Alex have to die? Why? Why, God Why?? He was my life. She's going to be disfigured because of him, he **died, **and he _abandoned_ her! He abandoned **me!** Oh, oh I can't breathe," Izzy said, gasping for air. "Why, God why?" she asked, looking at the roof, banging her head on the mattress with every word. George rushed to her side, helped her up, and made he lie down in the bed.

"Izzy, oh, Izzy," he said, as he joined her in the bed, holding her hand. They were both on their backs, looking at the roof, and George's arm was around Izzy's shoulders, his hand rubbing her head, and Izzy was in the small space between his arm and his side, her head on his shoulder, tears streaming down her face. "it's going to be fine, you'll make it through this," George said soothingly.

"How, how George? How the hell am I supposed to make it through this? How the hell is it going to be **fine? **My _husband, the love of my life, my world, _just **died. **He's gone! How"- she paused, steadying herself, "am I supposed to go on with my life?"

George paused, unable to think of a good answer. For a while the two of them lay there, and steadily, Izzy's breaths slowed and returned to an almost normal rate, identical to George's. Finally he spoke, softly, barely a whisper. "It's tough, and for a while you won't be able to get out of bed. Just waking up will be painful. You won't be able to make it through ten minutes without thinking of him. But over time, you will be able to go an hour, two, even three before he crosses your mind, and eventually, you will be able to go a day without thinking about him. For a while, just thinking about him will make you cry, then it will knock the breath out of you, and someday, it won't hurt to think about him, but it will make you happy to remember. The pain dulls over time, the memories fade. He'll always be with you, Iz, but the pain won't be a strong."

Izzy nodded, and snuggled in closer to George, who responded by tightening his grip and kissing the top of her fair blonde head. "I'm just," she whispered, barely audible, "afraid that I won't be able to remember,"

"I know," George said softly. "Believe me, I know. But you'll never forget the important memories."

A/N - - I am working on chapter seven tonight!! It should be up very soon.

Don't forget to review. It's pretty short, but there will be Mer/Der content in the next few chapters, I promise!


	7. Silent Tears

Chapter Seven: Silent Tears

"Cristina, hurry up," Meredith said, scratching the top of her bare left foot with her right, her $500 _Prada_ Pumps in her hand.

"Jesus, Mere. I have a baby playing kickball on my bladder here, and my uterus is freaking huge. I'm freaking HUGE!" was the passionate response from behind the door.

"Cristina?" A male voice asked, or stated. It was hard to tell. The tall figure leaned against the wall casually, as if everyday he ran into the woman who ran away from him, and broke his heart.

"Derek, please." Meredith whispered frantically. "Not here. I'm here strictly for Izzy, not to play catch-up with you. My friends need me."

"Your friends? The ones you so cruelly abandoned and ran away from, just like," he paused, breathing in deep. "Just like you did to me?"

"Derek, you have no right to accuse me of these things. It was ten years ago, leave it alone. It's history." Meredith sighed heavily, and rubbed her eyes wearily, and brushed the hair out of her eyes absently.

"Can't I at least talk to you, for five minutes? Don't you think you owe me that?" He questioned, running his hands though his hair, and then scratching the side of his face, where short black hair tinged with a few stray greys were sprouting, his signature very sexy man scruff.

"Derek, can you honestly say that I owe you anything? You broke me heart, you chose Addison over me, and then you broke up with her. While putting me on the spot? I had just gotten to the pint where I could stand in a room with you, without wanting to cry, scream, laugh, or run up and kiss you, and then you do that to me? I _had _to leave Seattle. I _had to."_

"Please, just five minutes? If nothing can't we at least talk like civilized people, for **five, mundane minutes?" ** Meredith finally relented, and followed Derek outside, onto the stone patio in the backyard, and onto the lawn, before finally coming to a stop near the side of the red-brick house, under the shade of a cypress tree.

"Okay, what did you so desperately want to talk about? You have four minutes." Meredith said, unkindly.

"Jesus, must you be so bitter and angry?" Derek asked, and when he saw the pissed, impatient look on Meredith's face, he knew that she wasn't going to soften up anytime soon.

"Okay, well maybe a little resentment is deserved. But, how has your life been?"

"It's been good. As I said before, I'm married, to and Ad-Exec, of all things. He's a workaholic, but he makes good money and he enjoys what he does. We have two kids together- Caleb and Kaela, Caleb's five, and starting kindergarten in the fall, and Kaela is only three. They're both at home, sick with nasty coughs, and Hayden is taking care of them, as well as his mom Marie. I opened my own practice, and I have four partners, one is an ear-nose-throat specialist, another is a paediatrician, and another is a neurologist. I became an OB/GYN after I left Seattle. My practice is a family practice, for everyone in the family can get taken care of at one place."

Derek nodded, listening intently. "But," he questioned "are you happy?"

"What kind of a question is that?" Meredith fumed. She turned around, furious, her face turning red, her fists balling up, her whole body shaking. Finally she whipped around and faced Derek. "You know what? I may not be entirely happy at how my life worked out, but I am content. I have an amazing family, my own practice, and a long life to look forward to. I may not have the same passion with Hayden that I shared with you, but I love him dearly, and he loves me, and treats me amazingly. This is a whole hell of a lot better than you ever did." Meredith then turned, to walk away.

But Derek was prepared this time. He grabbed her arm, and turned her around to look at him face to face, only inches away from his own face. Meredith inhaled his deep musky scent that she had missed for so many years, a longing locked deep within her heart, now unlocked and set free, her desire to be close to him a terrifying prospect that she wasn't sure she could resist.

"You don't think I've regretted how things ended, all these years?" Derek said, his voice husky, filled with emotion, barely a whisper. "You're not the only one who has been hurting Meredith. It's not only you who had their heart broken. Did you ever take a few seconds out of your life to think of how you broke my heart? I have spent every day for the past ten years trying to figure out what to do, how to win you back. I didn't cry myself to sleep each night, but it ate away at me, this grief this unimaginable sense of loss. You were my life, the one woman I loved more than myself, more than my career. I am only the biggest man in brain surgery because without you in my life, I had nothing but my career. So I dedicated my whole life to my work. I have only recently been able to move on. But I would drop it in a second if I knew you wanted me back, if I knew you loved me still, as much as I do, even though it's such a painful love." Derek reached out a hand and brushed Meredith's cheek, from her forehead to her chin, tracing his fingers along her cheekbone, her jaw bone. Meredith turned her head, all of it too much to comprehend, too much to resist. Silent Tears ran down her face, following familiar paths worn from the years she spent crying over Derek, their saltiness finding her lips, the bitter taste reminding Meredith of everything she had lost, of all the pain that this man had caused her to lose. Then all at once, she became very, very tired. Just keeping her eyes open was a task. She felt herself sag, and lean into Derek, who embraced her hopefully. She just gave in, she was tired of trying, she just let herself go, and he was there, Holding her, holding her up.


	8. All That Remains

Chapter Eight: All That Remains.

"George, how can it truly be that Alex is gone?" Izzy said, from her place on the large unmade king size bed she shared – well _used _to share with her husband. She was sitting Indian style, holding a very oversized pillow to her chest. George was leaning in the doorway, still unsure what to say. "I mean, he was here only two days ago. I can remember it so clearly…

'_Izzy, get up,' he said softly, brushing his long, agile fingers along her shoulder, and down her upper arm, in his certain way that gave her shivers. 'Babe, you have to get up. The day is wasting away.' _

"I just complained, you know? Groaned and rolled over, fell back asleep. He kissed my shoulder and said he would give me another half hour of sleep, and he was going to go to the supermarket and the café to get some coffee and stuff for breakfast. Then…" Izzy stopped her voice cracking. "He was hit by a man who ran a red light while talking on his cell phone. Totally a fluke accident. He died on the scene." Izzy was overcome by more tears. George moved to comfort her, and joined her on the bed. Izzy withdrew from his touch, before giving in, and settling into George's arms. She let out a loud, hiccupping laugh. "Who… Who knew one woman could cry so many tears?" she said, wiping furiously at her eyes.

"I did." a woman's voice said softly from the doorway, her tall slender figure leaning against the doorjamb. "Trust me. I've cried more than my fair share in my lifetime." She took a step into the room, and then headed over to the bed, sitting on the other side of Izzy. "Hey George," she whispered, squeezing his shoulder as she passed.

"Somehow, I don't doubt your experience Mere," Izzy said, a small smile starting to break onto her face, her eyes still shiny and wet.

"Oh, please, please God please! Tell me you have room on that bed for a very pregnant woman?" Cristina asked loudly as she entered the room.

"Of course we do," George said, making room beside Izzy while he sat in front of her, the four of them making a small circle. It was very reminiscent of their intern days, when they would all hang out like this, bitching about their patients, their work schedule, surgeries they missed out on, and their love lives. He realized that they had made a space large enough for another person subconsciously. It was for Alex, it dawned on him.

For the next few hours they talked about their lives since they had gone separate ways, Cristina moaned about her pregnancy, and her upcoming due date, George talked fondly of his wife Ginny, who was most likely waiting for him at the hotel room, and his two children Alexis and J.J. Meredith talked about her two children, and her husband, as well as the stress of the possibility of a third child.

"It's putting a lot of stress on our marriage," Meredith confessed. "I'm not so sure I want to go through it all again, but Hayden is so set on having another child."

"See, I'm not going past this one." Cristina said confidently, furiously rubbing her very large stomach.

"You never know," George said. "I mean, I'm no woman, but it's such a great thing, being a father- I can only imagine it's multiplied by ten times being a mother."

"Why didn't you have kids Izzy?" Cristina asked, fighting a yawn.

"We were just too committed to our careers. If I had the chance, I'd have jumped at it, as would have … Alex. We just didn't commit to it." She said simply, shrugging.

"How saaad!" Meredith sang. "Trust me, you're lucky right now. If you had children, then you'd have to deal with them right now, instead of gossiping with us."

"Agreed!" Cristina said joyfully. "I'm not a parent yet, but life's much simpler without kids."

"Oooh!" George said laughing. "Spoken like a true cynic!" Cristina looked at him, agitated. "So. How did Burke manage to get you pregnant anyways?"

"Stupid condom broke. Complete accident. But you know Burke… can't kill a living thing intentionally!"

"Yes, see in surgery, if it's an accident, that's a whole other matter!" Meredith said, laughing.

_The old friends continued to talk into the night, reminiscing, sharing their lives, and bridging the gap between what used to be, and what remained now. George continued to silently mull over this strange turn of events. He could never have predicted that he would reconnect with his best friends. He hadn't talked to Meredith in ten years, and he never even tried to contact her- for reasons he could never place. Then, when Alex proposed to Izzy… _he winced.

"What's wrong George?" Izzy asked, concerned, after seeing his painful face.

"What?" George asked, confused after being disrupted from his thoughts. "Oh, nothing…" he said unconvincingly, and Izzy gave him a strange look but joined the conversation again, something about what kinds of cars they owned, which confused George even more, because he still thought they were talking about their kids talents'. He shrugged, shook his head and returned to his thoughts.

_When Alex proposed to Izzy, it was painful to remember, because Izzy was so much better than Alex, Alex was a playboy, always up to no good. Hadn't he cheated on her in the first place? Back then, he hadn't been able to deal with it. Even now, his heart faintly hurt, although he knew his love for her was strictly platonic. But, ten years ago, this was not the truth, and he had a hard time accepting that Izzy wasn't in love with him. In the end, it had been too hard, and he had transferred to another hospital. He still regretted the choice, even more so, because four years after he left Seattle Grace, Izzy had contacted him, and they had reconnected. Still, they were never as close, and he regretted that, because he believed that best friends, like _true _best friends, only came once in your life, similar to soul mates, and essentially, they are your soul mates. Not necessarily in the same Eros love way, but they know every inch of you, and they are one of the few people in the world who actually _get you._ George regretted that he lost all that time with Izzy, and that their friendship wasn't the same as it used to. In the end, all that remained for George was regret. _


	9. Into the Blackness of the Night

Chapter Nine: Into the Blackness of the Night

Ginny was worried. It wasn't often that she worried. Well, that was a lie. She worried a lot- about her children, her weight, her thankless job, her _life_. Was this really what she wanted? She could have been a model. In fact, she was actually a working model when she met George, albeit not a well known model. They met on a beach in the Caribbean, no less. She was shooting swimsuits for a Japanese magazine. He was on vacation, with his friend, Carlos. Now, Carlos was sexy. He had chiselled good looks- a strong, manly jaw, piercing blue eyes, and wavy brown hair. He had a six o' clock shadow, which always, always made Ginny's heart race. Too bad he was already spoken for. She really had no intention of hooking up with George, but as is always the case, one drunken club-hopping night, led to the inevitable drunken flirtations, progressing to the drunken, experimental kisses, stumbling right up to second base, then running crookedly to home, the drunken sex.

Two months later, Ginny faced that dreaded moment, when her stick defiantly read 'positive', despite her so obvious prayers and pleas. Ginny did the right thing, called George, and kissed her modelling career _buh-bye._ All because, George was an upstanding man. He flew out to New York to be with her the next day, and then got a job at a nearby hospital, and then, a few weeks later, proposed. Ginny said yes, only because she didn't want to make that joyful, childlike face sad. Then, seven months later, she had her baby, a girl, which they named Alexis Mae. Another few years later, she was pregnant again. Her formerly coveted body was now flabby, and she was locked in the domestic life. Something she resented. Along with being a model, she was also a decent actress, which enabled her to keep these feelings to herself, these long, eight years. It enabled her to plan her secret escape, starting with getting back into shape, buying sexy clothes, and, look up sexy Carlos. He, was living in California, but travelled to New York to see her, a few months after she first contacted him.

It was then, that she started her affair. Carlos took a temporary position at a hospital, for her was a surgeon as well. He managed to fly under the radar, and George never even knew he was back in town. For Ginny, Carlos was what she needed. She was only eighteen when she met the much older George, and at 26 she was feeling restless. She regretted missing out on her partying days, and Carlos was just what she needed. She never intended that it would last this long, but he was like a drug that she was addicted to. He was her vice. She was a junkie, she needed her daily fix of him. He was a passionate lover, rough but tender at the same time. The sex was heaven compared to George's bumbling touch. With George, it was more of an obligation. Ginny could lean back, and go through the motion without even feeling anything. With Carlos, it was toe-curling, and she was always in the room with him, a very present, very willing participant.

Over the six months that she had been having an affair with Carlos, she had fallen in love with him. Her mother knew the truth, and what she had been planning for the past two months. It was her secret escape. She was sad that it had to come to this, but she wasn't happy with George anymore, and she wasn't even sure if she had _ever _been happy with him. Carlos made her happy, that much she knew. She was sad that she had to leave her children, for they were the only good things to come out of the marriage, the eight year ordeal that could have been avoided. She smiled grimly, and did the last few buttons up on her long black trench coat. She sat down on the stiff bed of the hotel, and tapped her black boot on the floor nervously.

It was her elaborate plan. It was coming to a head tonight. She was leaving George, and running away with Carlos. This was why she was nervous. Carlos was already late, by fifteen minutes. Ginny worried that George would come back to the hotel, and she'd had to confront him, and tell him how unhappy she was. She didn't want to see his face when she broke his heart, because she knew he really loved her. It made her sad that she was going to hurt this sweet, gentle and caring man, but he just didn't make her happy. She knew that she made him happy, as did their kids. Well, he could have almost full custody of them, she reasoned. As long as they visited her a few times a year. She could deal. Ginny froze, for a certain thought that had never crossed her mind suddenly popped into her head. Would she be made out to be a cold hard bitch? With a hard, hard heart? Evil beyond the point of humanness? Would George bitch to his stupid surgeon girl friends, about what an evil bitch, terrible mother she was? Ginny's hands started shaking, as headlights flashed through the window and onto the walls and ceiling. He was here, finally. She grabbed her small bag, checked to make sure the note she had written was still there, on the bed where she put it, along with her set of room keys. She walked toward the door, and before closing the door, she turned around and surveyed the room. With one last look at George's clothes, his fluffy flannel pyjamas on the right side of the bed, where he had left them that morning, she turned, walked through the door, and into the blackness of the night. The door clicked behind her, and she was gone, as the stars glittered in the dark sky.


	10. Muffins for my One and Only

Chapter Ten: Muffins for my One and Only.

Derek returned to his hotel room with Cara, as soon as the party was over. He had nothing to stay for- he had paid his respects, and Meredith had disappeared after their talk in the backyard. Now it was the middle of the night, and Cara lay, sleeping soundly beside him. He was staring up at the popcorn ceiling, his mind racing. He replayed the events of the afternoon over and over in his mind. His heart hammered against his chest, and he took three shaky breaths. He rolled over, and stared at the digital clock on the nightstand, it's cold, hard red numbers telling the cruel truth that, eight hours ago, he once again let the love of his life walk away. That thought burned through his head, and raced through his veins like fire, right up to his heart, where a cold, bitter sensation assaulted him.

Derek sat up, and raked his hands through his wavy hair. He just couldn't sleep. He couldn't think of anything else. He got off the bed, and pulled a pair of grey sweats over his navy boxers, and pulled on an old t-shirt from his college days. He pulled a beaten leather jacket over his shirt, and wrapped a navy scarf around his neck. Derek stepped outside of the hotel room, and into the hallway, the gold carpeted floors with ornate flowers leading him past the doorways with the brass numbers, through the halls whose walls were adorned with antique pictures and reproductions of Monet, and renaissance art reproductions. He pressed the gold button for down, and waited until his elevator arrived. Soon he was outside, the cold wind whipping his face, and he was thankful that he remembered to put on his scarf, and regretted not wearing a sweater underneath his jacket.

Derek walked along the misty pier, before settling on a bench overlooking the Hudson River. He still had a soft spot in his heart for New York, even if his life was now in Seattle. He watched the giant freight boats pass him by, and his thoughts drifted. Seeing Meredith was like a shock to his system. For the longest time after she left, he couldn't function without her. Gradually, over time he had learned to deal with the emptiness she had left him with, and continue to live his life. There had even been a few very drunken nights at Joe's, where he had drunken himself into such a stupor that he had contemplated suicide. On such a night, he had met Cara. Cara Gingham was everything he had needed at that minute. She was tall, thin, with long silky black hair that he loved running his fingers through, and deep, almond shaped green eyes. She had looked at him, when he was sitting on a bench, in a misty night not unlike the one he was sitting in tonight, staring at the boats in the harbor…

**FLASHBACK**

"_Are you alright?" Cara asked, her green eyes filled with concern. Derek looked up at her, his cheeks tear stained, his lips pale and cracked his hair greasy and messy, from sleep and a lack of showers. He must have looked a mess._

"_What? Uh … uhm, honestly?" he said, his voice feeble and cracking. "No. Not really." _

"_Can I be of any help?" She asked, taking a seat next to him. "I don't really do this, coming up and talking to strangers and all, but you looked very sad. Just, please don't try to rape or murder me please?" she joked, and let out a soft laugh, which was music to Derek's ears._

_It had been a long time since he had looked at a woman this way, but Cara was gorgeous. She caught his eye, because she wasn't a made-up beauty, she was a natural beauty. With a light dusting of freckles, barely visible, and thick lashes, and pale red, thick lips. For the first time in a long while, Derek laughed, and that made Cara smile._

"_Do you want to go have a coffee?" Cara asked. "I know a really cute 24 hour diner just a few blocks away." To his surprise, Derek found himself nodding and following Cara. _

_Even more to his surprise, Derek found himself actually enjoying talking to Cara. He felt something he hadn't felt in a long time, since before meeting Meredith. He wasn't surprised when Cara asked him to come to her place, or even when he agreed. He knew the sex was going to be fantastic, even before he actually slept with her, because they had hit it off so well, and that Cara was a very worldly person, and in his experience, worldly women where amazing lovers. But what surprised him the most, was when he returned home the next afternoon, right before he fell asleep, was that he realized, it had been the first time in six years that he hadn't thought of Meredith…_

**END OF FLASHBACK**

Even now, as he sat in present time, thinking, he knew that Cara was a good thing. He even knew that as much as he loved Meredith, he always would love Meredith. But, because Meredith was Meredith, she wouldn't leave her family. She couldn't be the crappy mom her mom was to her. In his heart of hearts, Derek knew that Cara was the next best thing. His heart still hurt as he came to the conclusion that, he would never be with Meredith again. To make this final, he knew he had to propose to Cara. The only thing that was stopping him was Meredith, and since he had just decided to close off his heart to Meredith for good, he knew he should propose to Cara. She had been pressuring him for a few months now, as had all his sisters. They wanted little nieces and nephews from Derek and Cara as soon as possible, so that they could be close in age to their youngest children.

Derek waited until the sun had risen, before going to a nearby café. He purchased two coffees, a few chocolate chip muffins, for those were the only kind Cara liked, and a few pastries. He then headed back to the hotel, to be there when Cara, a notoriously early riser, woke up. He knew that this is what he should do. He would never be able to live with himself if he broke up Meredith's marriage, and her family. He knew, deep somewhere that he had to move on, and lose Meredith, to fully allow them both to heal the wounds that were still there. He walked down the hallway that he had left a few hours ago, and opened the hotel room.

Cara was sitting up in bed, with her black rimmed glasses perched on her nose, reading the _New York Times. _"Where did you go?" She asked absently. It was something that Derek appreciated in Cara- the fact that she was not a jealous person, and she wasn't one to worry very often- it took a lot to make her sweat.

"I went to go get some sustenance," He said, holding up the bags of muffins and the tray of coffees. "A coffee with two sugars and one cream as well as muffins for my one and only," he said, smiling.

"Chocolate chip?" Cara questioned, her interest piqued, lowering the newspaper onto her lap and accepting the coffee. Derek climbed onto the bed bedside her.

"Nothing less," he said, laughing and taking a sip of his own coffee, black.

Cara dug into the brown paper bag with the muffins and drew one from the bag. After taking a bite, she looked at Derek, her mouth slightly full with food. "What's the occasion Derek?" her green eyes filled with apprehension.

"Do I need an occasion to treat you to muffins?" Derek said. Cara, narrowed her eyes slightly, but continued to eat her muffin.

"Hmph." She answered, and then swallowed. "It's just a little out of character that's all."

Derek nodded, and leaned closer to her. "Well," he whispered in her ear. "I was thinking that's it's time we get married." He then took the newspaper off her lap, and took a bite from her muffin all in one smooth motion, so very smooth, just like himself.

Cara's mouth hung open. "No!" she gasped incredulously. "You're serious??"

Derek smiled, and nodded as he licked his forefinger and turned the page of the newspaper. "I figure," he said, "that I am no young cat. I mean, I turn forty-seven in a few weeks, and I think four years of dating is a respectable amount of time. And, you know, I do love you."

Cara smiled. "You really are serious?" when Derek nodded in response, Cara shrieked. "YES! Oh my God Derek, YES!"

Cara dodged all the muffins, the newspaper, and the coffees to hug Derek. She kissed him, still smiling. "I can't believe it," She whispered, still in disbelief.

"Neither can I," Derek said. "I never thought I'd get married again, and I never thought that you, oh so very young you, would want to marry an old fart like me."

Cara play slapped his arm. "I am not that young!" She protested. Cara was only thirty-two, and she was a first-grade teacher. "Besides, I love you. You love me. That's all that matters." She kissed him again, and ran her hands through his slightly graying brown hair, and the two made love on top of the newspaper.


End file.
